Is There a Backlog of Available Media?

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We have more cultural detritis than ever before. There's a greater back log of available media, right? So like spotify, i probably could be happy, like, listening to the past for the rest of my life. And in some ways it feels like there is a bit of a cultural back log that may make it harder for future generations to have asort of blank slate experience,. maybe, that we had in music as tenagers. But on the other hand, because people still crave community, people like the idea of being part of a group of people who listen to stuff.

Kelefa Sanneh is a staff writer at The New Yorker. His book is Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres.

“I’m always thinking about how to not be that person at a party who corners you and tells you about their favorite thing and you’re trying to get away. It’s got to feel light and fun. And what that means in practice is writing about music for readers who don’t care about music, while at the same time writing something that the connoisseurs don’t roll their eyes too hard at.”

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